t was a long way to Nueva Ecija,a major rice-growing province inCentral Luzon in the Philippines.But the journey was worth it for the25 extension workers from Mozam-bique, Rwanda, Uganda, Tanzania,

and Kenya. This rst batch of men

and women attended a 16-week-long course to learn concepts in rice

T

wenty-ve participants from Africa came to the Philippinesto attend the Season-Long RiceFarming Program for Extension Agronomists conducted by IRRI and the Philippine Rice ResearchInstitute (PhilRice) under theCoalition in Africa for Rice Develop-ment. They returned to their home-lands with knowledge not only of new farming technologies in their minds but also an understanding of teaching in their hearts.

I R R I ( 2 )

First crop of teachers.

Extension workers from Mozambique, Rwanda, Uganda, Tanzania, and

Kenya were among the rst batch to attend the 16-week training on rice farming, and, equally

important, on how to effectively pass on that knowledge to African farmers.